


A Few Days Off

by zealousAvenger



Category: Street Fighter
Genre: Business Trip, Gen, I'm playing it fast and loose with the canon, Old Friends, The death is from before the story starts but I thought I'd put it there just in case, This'll have romance at some point just not yet, Trauma?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-07
Updated: 2021-01-07
Packaged: 2021-03-18 01:29:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,453
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28609863
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zealousAvenger/pseuds/zealousAvenger
Summary: Working for Interpol, Chun-Li finds herself in England for a few weeks and gets in touch with her old friend, Cammy.
Kudos: 1





	A Few Days Off

**Author's Note:**

> I'm still trying to figure out where to take this, but it was on my mind and I figured I'd put what I had down for now. This will probably have multiple chapters but it isn't planned out yet, so bear with me!

Chun-Li dreamed of Thailand. It wasn’t unusual that this sort of thing happened. Her dreams took her back there almost every time she got on a plane now. It almost made the trips unbearable. Traveling the world and playing the hero had seemed so perfect to her back then. Thailand. It was the final destination of her first big break into the strange dark underworld of martial arts. She made friends, lost others, and left determined to save as many lives as she could. The Thailand incident was what set Chun down her path, but she couldn't get over how it ended. Neither time nor distance could change that, and no matter how many lives she saved, she'd never forgiven herself for the one she lost.

Shadaloo was a comically evil shadowy organization that seemed to go out of its way just to fuck up Chun-Li’s life. Fortunately, ever since that operation, they were never as powerful as before. Their main base was destroyed, fracturing Shadaloo and putting a stop to Bison’s plans. Of course, Chun knew that wasn’t the end of him. They had met again as enemies several times, but she still remembered the feeling of triumph that she felt that day and how quickly it melted away.

That moment was what haunted her about Thailand. Despite the constant danger the trio of Charlie, Guile, and Chun-Li had faced, she had deluded herself into believing that they were invincible. They were the heroes and they were fighting genuine villains, why shouldn't they be invincible? It was stupid. Chun knew that the real world was nothing like the movies she’d loved when she was younger, but thanks to how successful they were for the entire trip, it just seemed impossible that they would fail. After the explosion, there were only two of them left. Guile stood still, trying to find words that just didn't come. Guile stayed like that for almost an entire minute. In her dream, there was no hesitation.

“Charlie didn’t make it.”

The rest played out in her mind like a sad movie. The sounds around her went first, then the hot humid feeling from the air left, and before she could think to stop herself, Chun-Li had collapsed. She sat on the grass in disbelief and looked to her friend, hoping beyond hope that this was just some sick joke, but he never said anything else. 

Chun-Li got the impression that Guile was always playing the straight man routine in his relationship with Charlie even from the first time they'd met. He was an imposing man that liked to keep everything planned out and as safe as possible. Until that day, she had rarely even seen him crack a smile, no matter how good Charlie's joke was. It was so extreme at times that she wondered whether Guile even could feel emotion. Either way, she’d never expected to see him cry. He was supposed to be all business. He was supposed to be the guy that made sure everyone escaped. Whatever she thought she knew about Guile didn't matter. The one thing she was sure of was that he was Charlie's friend. Not even his typical urgency survived the encounter. The only thing that Guile could say when he cried was "Charlie didn't make it." The rest of that day didn't matter. She always woke up soon after Guile said that.

* * *

It had been raining since she landed in England, so it was no surprise that the sound of the light pattering against the window was the first thing Chun-Li noticed when she woke up. When she stretched, the former street fighter was reminded of just how much colder it was here in the United Kingdom than it was back at her home in Hong Kong. Even though it wasn’t always warm there, she could at least count on clear skies. She shivered. Even the act of pulling the heavy covers up over her face brought on another, fleeting wave of cold. Chun yawned and rolled around until she found the most comfortable position to warm up in. The covers were now completely untucked and even though she knew it would be a pain to fix later, she was too comfortable to care. Chun-Li yawned again and looked out towards the nightstand where her phone was charging.

She was in the UK on Interpol business. Interpol relied on her as a counterinsurgency specialist ever since the fall of Shadaloo. Of course, things were different these days. She never understood why the three of them, an Interpol detective and two Lieutenants in the USAF, had gotten off so lightly with the way they’d handled Shadaloo. Nowadays, it would be unthinkable to send in a few agents and blow up a base. Almost none of the modern threats they faced were so centralized. Now it was all about gaining intelligence and picking off splinter groups when it was advantageous. For what it was worth, Chun-Li's experience as a detective and an operative were indispensable. She was very good at what she did, even if her heart wasn't in it anymore. She still wanted to help people, but there had to be a more constructive way.

Regardless, she was on loan to the UK branch for a few weeks as an operations advisor. Because the situation wasn’t urgent, the agency had encouraged her to take some time off. Though she'd already been there for two days, the fighter still hadn't quite adjusted. The time difference was giving her the most trouble. Furthermore, she’d planned on exploring Manchester and finding some places she could go to relax in her spare time, but considering that she was waking up at 4 PM, she wasn't having the best of luck.

Chun knew that she wasn’t the same person that started this crazy path of globetrotting and supernatural fighting, but now it was starting to show. She couldn’t pick up her life and leave for weeks on end anymore. Once a world warrior, she just wanted to settle down. Her mind returned to Hong Kong and her neighborhood. Antics aside, it still faced problems that it had been struggling with as far back as she could remember. Maybe the best place to start would be with what she already knew. Chun-Li hadn't been awake for long and she was already worn out. Oh well. She needed to decide what she wanted to do with her life, but it could wait.

Slowly, she rocked forward, still wrapped in the sheets and comforter, until she was sitting up in her bed. The rain was still coming down steady, giving the day a slightly darker-than-normal vibe. Chun rubbed her eyes and finally stretched out of the warm embrace of drowsiness. As if on cue, her phone pinged, the screen lighting up the otherwise dark room. She had to squint to get a good look at it, but upon closer inspection, the detective was glad to have stayed awake.

Cammy was a close friend of hers, and through sheer coincidence, she had heard that Chun-Li was coming across the big pond and requested some time off so that they could catch up. It had been quite a while since the two women had talked, much less seen each other. Chun-Li already felt warmer. She didn't realize how alone she felt in her room until Cammy had gotten in touch, but now she was endlessly grateful. Having been so caught up with her work, Chun hadn’t even thought to get in touch with her English friend. Leaning back against the headboard, she tapped away happily, inquiring if Cammy would be free that evening. Fortunately, she was! By the sound of it, Cammy wasn’t much more familiar with Manchester than Chun-Li was, but with some helpful recommendations from colleagues at the agency, They had a couple of choices. 

With something to do and someone to see, the detective felt a surge of energy. The time leading up to their night out went by in an instant. Because they were just catching up, Chun went with a comfortable look. She picked out a dark red pullover sweatshirt and a matching pair of black sweatpants. The detective hoped Cammy wouldn't mind the look. After all, no amount of friendship was going to ward off the cold. Chun-Li took one last look in the mirror before leaving. She was pretty sure she had everything. It was still a little strange to go out without carrying a bag or something for her wallet and keys, but it was a habit she was happy to kick the habit. And so she stepped out into the light evening rain, excited to catch up with an old friend.


End file.
